Alarm-watch.



J. S. DE'WITT.

ALARM WATCH. I APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20., 1912.

1,098,369, Patented June 2, 191 i 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

37 Joy/Y 6205/1477; v

- gym ATTORNEYS J. S. DE WITT. ALARM WATCH.

APPLICATION I'ILED NOV. 20, 1912.

Patented June 2, 1914 ATTORNEYS JOHN S. DE WITT, 0F POCATELLO, IDAHO.

ALARM-WATCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 20, 1912. Serial No. 732,451.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN S. DE Wrrr, acitizen of the United States, and a resident of Pocatello, in the countyof Bannock and State of Idaho, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Alarm-Watches, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to alarm watches, my more particular purpose beingto provide a watch with means for'mountmg it upon a persons wrist orankle and providin said watch with additional means for pro ucing agripping or squeezing effect upon the wrist or ankle for the purpose ofattracting the attention of the wearer and thus serving the urpose-of analarm.

y invention further contemplates va ri-l ous improvements in alarmmechanisms for watches and analogous other time pieces in order toimprove the general efiiclency of such mechanisms. Reference is made tothe accompanying drawings formin a part of this specification and inwhic like letters indicate like parts.

and partly broken away showing thewatchj and bracelet and also the alarmcord for, tightening upon the wearers Wrist; Fig.3 1 is a rear elevationof the watch, the back lid thereof being open; Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the watch, the dial .and hands be-} ing removed; Fig. 5 is aView somewhat similar to Fig. 4 but showing certain movable partsoccupying positions different from those they occupiedin said figure;Fig. 6 is a detail showing in section the drum and alarm cordcontrollable by the same; Fig. 7 is a detail showing in perspective thealarm lever; Fig. 8 is a detail showing in perspective the releasinglever; Fig. 9 is a perspective showing a dog for preventin prematureretrogression in the winding 0 the spring; Fig. 10 is aperspective ofthe shifting lever; Fig. 11 is a view of the front portion of the watch,the dial being removed and certain parts being broken away; and, Fig. 12is a fragmentary section on the line 12-"-12 of Fig. 11 looking in thedirection of the arrow.

The band 13, which may be made of any suitable material but is in-thisinstance constructed of leather, is adapted to be worn around the wrist,ankle or other appropriate Figure 1 1s a plan view of the alarmwatch,-,- and a bracelet for carrying 1t u -themes ers wrist; Fig. 2 isa view partly in elevj ton} the band 13 is a pocket 16 which holds awatch 17. This watch is provided with a stem 18 and with a revolublehead 19. The watch is further provided with aback lid 20, a back plate21, and a front plate 22.

Extendlng through the front plate 21 and back plate 22 is a windingarbor '23 pro-- vided at one of its ends with a hollow extendingcylindrical portion 2 1. A spiral spring 25 encircles the cylindricalportion 24 and is provided with a straight portion 26 extendingdiametrically through the cylindrlcal portion 24.- and secured in slotsfor this purpose as will be understood from F 12. The spring. 25 isencircled by a drum 27 having a cylindrical portion 27 the latter beingprovided internally with a shoulder or note 27 the outer end of thespring 25. Except for the spring 25, the drum 27 is loose upon thecylindrical portion 24 of the winding'arbor. The arrangement of theseparts can best be understoodfrom Fig. 6. According to this figure, thearbor is free to turn in a clockwise direction without causing therotation of the drum but if the arbor be turned in a contraclockwisedirection, the outer or freeend of the spring 25 lodges in the notch 27and tends to cause the drum torotate. The drum carries a pin 27 merelyas a means for fastening a flexible connectlon to the drum ashereinafter described. The main spring of the watch which in thisinstance serves the double purpose of propelling the general gearing ofthe watch and of actuating the alarm is shown at 28 and is. carried in a,winding barrel 28 as will be understood from Fig. 12. The winding arbor23 is provided with a square portion 23 which may be turned byapplication of a key thereto if desired, though the watch is a stemwinder. Mounted rigidly upon the square portion 23 of the winding arboris a ratchet wheel 29 and at 30 is a guard plate disposed adjacent tothe ratchet wheel 29 for holding the latter in position. A dog is shownat 31 and is adapted to engage the ratchet wheel 29 to preventretrograde movement thereof. A leaf spring 32 engages the dog 31 andnormally tends to force the latter into engagement with the ratchetwheel. A releasing lever is shown at 33 and is provided with a portion33 for engaging the dog 31 in order This shoulder or notch mates 7Patented June 2; I.

to force the same out of contact with the ratchet wheel. A spring 34presses constantly upon the releasing lever 33 and tends to force it tothe left according to Figs. 4 and 5.

A shifting lever is shown at 35 and is provided with a thumb piece 36 byaid whereof it may be moved as indicated by dotted and tion 41 whichextends beneath the shifting lever 35. A leaf spring 42 engages thealarm lever 39 the latter being provided with a notch 43 for thispurpose. The alarm lever is further provided at one of its ends with alug 39, and at its other end with a lug 44', these lugs being integralwith the lever and having the form shown more particularly in Figs. 4,5, and 7.

The alarm dial is shown at 45 and is provided with ordinals indicativeof the hours as will be understood from Figs. 4 and 5. The alarm dial'45 is provided peripherally with a notch 46 and has some of thefunctions of a cam, as is customary in alarm dials heretofore used. Thehour wheel is shown at 47 and the hour wheel hub at'48. A fastening 49having generally the form of an annular disk is detachably mounted uponthe hour wheel hub 48 and presses the arm dial 45 gently against thehour wheel 47. The alarm dial is thus frictionally held in position uponthe hour wheel hub. The hour hand is shown at 50 and is carried by thehour wheel hub 48. The center arbor is shown at 51, the center pinion at52, and the center wheel at 53, these three parts being secured rigidlytogether and acting as a unit. The center arbor 51 is provided with areduced portion..54. Frictionally mounted upon this reduced portion isthe cannon pinion 55 having a tubular portion 56 upon which is mountedthe minute hand 57, the tubular portion 56 being friction-tight upon theportion 54. Carried by the winding barrel 28 is the main gear 58 whichmeshes with the center pinion 52. The cannon pinion 55, which has aspeed commensurate with that of the minute hand, meshes with an exchangepinion 60 which meshes with the hour wheel 47. Whenever the exchangewheel 59 is turned it causes the rotation of the cannon pinion 55 andthe hour wheel 47 at the relative ratio of speed in which these membersalways travel. Meshing with the exchange wheel 59 is a gear wheel 61which is idle and is normally turned by the exchange wheel 59 but whichmay be rotated at the will of the operator for the purpose of settingthe alarm mechanism. Extending through the stem 18 and secured to therevoluble head 19 is a shaft 62 which is provided at its lower end witha square portion, the latter extending slidably through a crown pinion63. This crown pinion meshes with a spur pinion 64, the latter beingjour naled upon a bolt 65. The setting lever is shown at 66 and carriesa pinion 67 which meshes with the pinion 64 and is mounted upon a pin68. A leaf spring 69 engages the setting lever 66 and by its pressureupon the same tends to maintain the gear 67 in mesh with the ratchetwheel 29. The setting lever 66 carries a pin 70 which extends through aslot 71 in the face plate 22. A lever 72 is pivotally mounted upon a pin73 extending backwardly or inwardly from this plate the lever engagingthe pin 70 and also engaging the shaft 62.

The operator by pressing the head 19 downwardly as indicated in Fig. 4causes the setting lever 66 to rock slightly in a clockwise directionaccording to Fig. 11 so that the pinion 67 disengages the ratchet wheel29 and meshes with the wheel 61. With the parts in this position if thestem 19 be turned the hour and minute hands are also turned and thealarm dial 45 is likewise turned at the same speed as the hour handunless restrained by the alarm lever 39 as hereinafter explained.

In Fig. 4 the parts are shown as they appear when the alarm is beingset.

In Fig. 5 the'mechanism is shown as it appears immediately after thealarm has gone off. Secured to the pin 27 (see Fig. 6) is a cord 74which is partially wound upon the cylindrical portion 27 a of the drum27. This cord extends through a hole 75 in the back lid 20 of the watchand is provided with a knot 76. One end of the cord is connected at 7 7with a bracelet 13.

The operation of my device is as follows :The bracelet carrying thewatch and other parts above described is mounted upon the wrist or ankleand the watch is wound and set. Upon the arrival of the time when thealarm is to be sounded, the alarm mechanism is actuated, the cord 71 istightened, and the pressure of this cord thus actuated attracts theattention of the operator thereby serving the purpose of an alarm. Inorder to explain the winding and setting, I call attention to therelative positions of the several movable parts shown in Fig. 5, thealarm mechanisms being here shown as they appear when the alarm has justgone off, as above stated. To wind the watch, the operator grasps thethumb iece 36 and moves the shifting lever 35 s ightly in a clockwisedirection according to Fig. 4. This swings the adjacent end ofthei'releasing lever 33 to the right according to Fig.

4 so that it lodges upon and is held by the lug 39}, so that the dog 31,now out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 29 is brought intoengagement with the latter. The operator now grasps the stem 19 andturns the same in a clockwise direction. Motion is transmitted throu hgear pinions 63, 64, 67, and ratchet whee 29 to winding arbor 23 andthence to the main spring 28, the latter being thus wound from its innerend. During the winding of the watch, the cord 74 is relaxed and as thespring 25 SllPS idly past the notch 27" as above explained the drum 27has little or no tendency to rotate with the winding arbor. Theretrogression of the cord 74 relieves the pressure of the cord upon thewrist or ankle of the wearer. The dog 31 beinglnow in engagement withthe ratchet ,w eel 29 prevents retrogression of the winding arbor. TheWatch being wound, the alarm may be set or not as desired. In order toset thealarm, the operator presses the head 19 downwardly and turns itin such direction as to rotate the hands of the watch backwardly. In theparticular instance now under consideration, the head 19 is for thispurpose turned in a contraclockwise direction. The gear 67 is nowdisengaged from the ratchet wheel 29 and is in en agement with the gear61. Rotation of the ead 19 causes the hour and minute hands to turnbackwardly but the lug 44 of the alarm lever 39 now occupies the notch46 of the alarm dial 45 and consequently the alarm dial is unable toturn backwardly. The stem 19 is turned backwardly until the hands of theclock indicate the time at which the alarm is to be actuated. While thestem is thus being turned and the hands are being carried backwardly,the alarm dial 45 tends to turn in a contraclockwise direction accordingto Fi 5 but being held by the lug 44 while t e hour wheel 47 and thehour wheel hub 48 are thus turned backwardly, thealarm dial is virtuallydisplaced relatively to'the position of the hour wheel 47 and the hourhand 50. The hands having been set backward, the downward pressure uponthe head 19 is continued but the head is turned in the contrarydirection to that in which it was turned in setting the hands back-thatis to say the head 19 is now turned in a clockwise diuntil it rests uponthe outer peripheral edge of the alarm dial as indicated in Fig. 4. Therotation of the head 19 is continued until the hands occupy theiroriginal positions-or, ,in other words, until they indicate the correcttime, or at least the proximate time they indicatebefore they weredisturbed in the setting of the alarm mechanism. This leaves the alarmdial turning at the same speed as the hour hand, the notch 46 as aconsequence gradually approaches the lug 44. When the time arrives forthe alarm to be actuated, the lug 44 snaps or drops abruptly into thenotch 46. This allows the alarm lever 39, under tension of the spring42, to turn slightly in a clockwise direction according to Figs. 4 and5. The lugs 39* thereupon disengages the adjacent end of the releasinglever 33. This lever under tension of the spring 34 is thereupon rockedslightly in a clockwise direction according to Fig. 5. The dog 31 1sthus-forced out of engagement with the a ratchet wheel 30 and as theratchet wheel in question is thus released, the winding arbor 23 beginsto turn, being driven in a clockwise direction according to Figs. 4 and5 by the partial unwinding of the main spring The rot-ation'of thewinding arbor 23, due to the action just stated causes the spring 25 toturn the drum 27 in a contraclockwise direction accordin to Figs. 3 and6. This causes the drum-=2 to wind up a portion of the cord 74 therebycausing the cord to attract the attention of the wearer of the watch asabove described. The knot 76 serves as a limiting stop for preventingthe entire cord frombeing wound upon the drum 27 and when this knot 76reaches the hole 75 in the back lid 20 so that the drum 27 can turn nofarther, the rotation of the windin arbor 23 is brought to a stop andthe mam spring 28, though partially un- Wound, still remains undertension and the general mechanism ofthe watch continues to operate sothat the watch runs continuously.

The alarm having gone oflt' so that the parts now appear as indicated inFig. 5 the watch may be rewound and the cycle of operation abovedescribed may be repeat-' ed indefinitely.

struction shown" as variations may bema'de therein without departingfrom the spirit of my invention.

What I claim' as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is asfollows 1. The combination, with a watch having alarm mechanism and aspiral main spring for actuating said alarm mechanism, of an arborconnected to the inner end of said spring for the purpose of winding thesame, a drum mounted loosely upon said arbor, means controllable by saidarbor for locking said arbor and said drum together and for'rend'eringthem looserelati'velyto each other, and a cord partially wound upon saiddrum "and controllable by rotation thereof forattracting a p'ersonsattention.

10 drum upon said arbor when said arbor is turned in one direction andfor disconnecting said drum from said arbor when said arbor is turned inthe opposite direction, and a cord wound partially upon said drum andcontrollable thereby for attracting a 15 persons attention.

JOHN S. DE WITT. Witnesses:

WILLIAM W. MAoE, JACK M. DE WITT.

